Teresa and Sodapop
by 2CentSodapop
Summary: (bad title, good story....i hope) Sodapop's girl, Sandy, moved away. But what happens when he spills all to his friend, Teresa, and they begin to get into a serious relationship. Is Soda in over his head?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Sodapop Curtis or any of the other Outsiders. I only own Teresa.

**Summary: **Sodapop thought the only person he loved was Sandy. Then she moved away. Sodapop was crushed, but found that to heal his pain, Teresa Macks was the one to turn to. What happens when Sodapop and Teresa start getting serious in their relationship?

**Chapter 1** – Soda's POV

I opened the door and went inside, staring at the mail. I had sent a letter to Sandy at her new address, and she had sent me something back. My letter had been a little along the lines of this:

_Dear Sandy,_

_How are you doing in your new town? I hope you've made lots of friends and are doing well. Everything is all right here. Ponyboy and Darry are both OK with Johnny's death, and the rest of the gang is dealing alright with Dally's. I miss you a whole lot, and hope you'll come back to visit._

_The reason I was righting (aside to just drop in and say hi and check up on you) was because I was thinking about our relationship and how much I really and truly loved you, and I decided that maybe we could work out some sort of long-distance relationship. I would really love it if we could start up something like that, and I know it won't quite be the same for either one of us, but I feel like I just need to be in touch with you._

_Well, think it over and get back to me on that. I hope to hear from you soon and maybe you can come back and visit sometime!_

_Love,_

_Sodapop Curtis_

The letter I got returned from Sandy didn't even sound like her at all. This is what her letter said as I opened it slowly on the kitchen table.

_Dear Sodapop Curtis, _ at first I couldn't figure out why she had called me "Sodapop Curtis", but I soon found out why. Things were NOT the same with her and I.

_I was also spending lots of time thinking about you and I, and I came to a bit of a different conclusion. You see, when we got here, I met a boy. He's very nice and handsome (but he could never beat you in that category, and he asked me out on a date. I sort of figured that since I had moved away, we had broken up. I guess you had different feelings about that. My new boyfriend's name is Matthew Block. _

_Sodapop, I am so truly sorry that it didn't work out between us, and I hope to see you again soon. Maybe you can meet Matthew. He really is very nice. Please don't be mad at me, and I hope to hear back from you._

_Your friend,_

_Sandy_

I sighed, staring down at my feet. Even though no one was around to see me, I still felt my face get red, and the hair on the back of my neck stood up like it always did when I was upset. I refolded the letter neatly, then slowly crumpled it in my fist, watching the paper fold into itself. It was oddly satisfying. _Who needs her anyway? I have the whole gang to take care of me. I don't really have time for a girlfriend anyway. _I thought, trying to reassure myself. It didn't work so well. _Matthew. What a prissy-boy name._

I got up and walked into me and Pony's room. Ponyboy looked up from his book. I noted that the title was _Gone With the Wind_. Pony had read it nonstop since Johnny's and Dally's deaths. I flopped down onto the bed. He looked at me quizzically.

"Sodapop? Are y-" He began. I held up my hand to silence him.

"I don't want to talk about it." I said, letting my hand plop down onto the bed beside me with a light _thumph_.

"OK, whatever." He said, going back to his book. It was silent for a few minutes, until I suddenly just about exploded. I knew he wanted to know all about it, but wouldn't ask because I had told him not to. The silence was his way of squeezing info out of people. I knew he did it, but it always worked on me like a charm.

"Ok, fine." He looked up with mock surprise on his face, but in his eyes, there was concern. "I sent Sandy a letter a few weeks ago asking her if maybe we could go long-distance. Today I just got a letter back from her saying that she had a new boyfriend. Next time she comes to visit, she wants me to meet him. His name is Matthew." I said, staring down at my feet again. "Prissy-boy name…." I muttered under my breath.

"What?" Pony said.

"Nothing."

"Where's the letter? I wanna read this for myself." Pony said, sliding off the bed.

"In the kitchen on the floor in a wad. I sort of wadded it up when I finished reading it." I said thinking, _I would've burned it for this exact reason, but couldn't find matches._

He came back in a few minutes, slowly walking while reading the letter. He looked up when he got to the bottom and sighed, tossing the letter toward me. It didn't quite make it, due to the weight of it. Or lack-there-of, I guess.

"Sucks, huh?" I said, now switching my stare to the wrinkled paper on the floor.

"Yeah. Hate to say it, but that's not so tuff. Especially since you were gonna ask her to marry you." He said, shaking his head. I sighed.

"I know whatcha mean, lil man." I glanced out the window. "I think I'm gonna go take a walk. Wanna come?" I asked.

"Nah," He said, shaking his head. "I think I'm gonna read some more." He plopped down on the bed, grabbing his book.

"Ok. Tell Darry where I went when he gets home. I might be gone a while. I need to think things over real good." I called over my shoulder, grabbing my jacket off the floor by the couch. I always threw it haphazardly on the floor when I came in. My shoes were on the front porch, and I slipped into them without tying them before taking off down the street toward the lot.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders, only Teresa Macks and Matthew Block

**Chapter 2** – Sodapop's POV

I walked down the street with my shoes still untied. I was too upset to tie them. Instead of putting my jacket on, I flung it over my shoulder and held onto it with one finger, wondering vaguely why I had even bothered to grab it. I sort of wished I had brought the letter with me, but then decided I probably would have just ended up chewing it up and spitting it out. Literally. I walked on, stewing in my own misery.

When I reached the lot, it was empty. I felt disappointed for some reason, even though I wanted to be alone. It was one of those mixed feelings where one half says "alone" and the other half says "company". Instead of quarreling with the little voices in the back of my head, I flopped down on the hard ground, immediately regretting that. My butt hurt now too, along with my heart. **(author's note-yes, I know that was sort of cheesy, but the sentence didn't seem long enough.)** So many thoughts were going through my head, I couldn't quite decipher one from the other. I imagined picking one out of a hat, reaching into a baseball cap full of little white wispy thread-like things that were thoughts, and pulling one out. I imagined reading it out loud and this is what I came up with:

_Why?_

I sighed. _Wow. So specific there._ I thought to myself. I decided that maybe I could rid myself of these nasty, nagging thoughts if I took a nice long walk and then circled back around to the lot. Maybe stop by Steve's place while I was at it. That sounded pretty good to me right then, so I got up and began walking again. My shoe slipped off and I bent down to put it back on. I tied them both up and started walking again. I remembered I had left my jacket in the lot. I mentally sighed. _This is supposed to be a relaxing, mind-emptying walk, and here I am losing shoes and forgetting jackets. _I thought, rubbing my temples. I tried a new strategy. No more thinking. That didn't work after about the first five steps, because I kept thinking, _must not think. Must not think. Must not think._ Finally, after a few more blocks and a couple rocks in my shoe, I arrived at the Dingo. I peered inside from a distance before venturing up into sight of everyone standing around outside. Darry would have said that it wasn't smart to go to the Dingo by myself, but I knew Tim Shepard would help me out if I got into a sticky situation. Him and his gang were always hanging around the Dingo.

Sure enough, as I approached, I felt an arm wrap drape around my shoulders. I didn't dare look to see who it was, so I waited.

"Hey Sodapop. Whatcha doing here by yourself?" I breathed a sigh of relief as I recognized Two-Bit's voice. I could smell booze on his breath, but that didn't surprise me.

"Just hanging out." I said, grinning at him. I liked Two-Bit. He could make people laugh just about as much as I could make people smile. Together we could keep people in stitches all night long.

He faked a head lock on me, and gave me a noogie. I wiggled away from him, smoothing down my hair.

"Hey now, man. Don't be messing up my hair," I joked, shaking my head so my hair all fell back into place.

"Ohhhhh. Did I mess up wittle Sodapop's hair?" He said in a joking baby voice. If you want to hear funny out of a tough hood like Two-Bit, that's exactly what could make anyone laugh. I began to laugh, and it felt good. I hadn't laughed at all yet today, and normally me and Pony did stuff together when I got home from work that made us both laugh. But lately he had his nose buried in that book of his.

"So. Two-Bit. Who are you here with?" I asked, looking around. Two-Bit sort of swayed on the spot, and I knew he was drunk. I was surprised he had even recognized me as myself and not someone else.

"Me? Shoot, kid. I'm still waiting for Dally to show up. He told me he would be here earlier today." He was swaying rather heavily now. I felt my heart sink. Maybe Two-Bit hadn't quite gotten over Dally's death yet. I knew he was drunk, but he was still waiting for Dally to get here, and that just about broke my heart, except for the fact that it was already broken. I looked up at him, and felt my eyes soften. I knew I wasn't gonna cry, I hadn't done that since I was about seven. I watched Two-Bit, swaying there, good-naturedly telling me what he was gonna do to Dally when he finally did get here.

"……I oughta strangle that little rascal, standing me up like this. Well….glory, I should go find him right now. Prolly over at Buck's agai…." He trailed off at the end. I sighed, stepping closer and putting my hand firmly, but gently on Two-Bit's shoulder.

"Two-Bit."

"Yeah…."

"Two-Bit….Dally ain't coming here tonight. Or any other night. In fact, he's never coming here. Or anywhere else. Dally's gone, Two-Bit." I said, trying to break it to him without actually breaking it to him. I figured maybe if I refreshed that drunk mind of his, maybe the past month's events would come back to him. It obviously didn't.

"Gone? You mean, he moved away? He didn't even come say bye to me." Two-Bit said, using me to support some of his weight. I wondered vaguely if maybe the alcohol he was drinking still hadn't kicked in fully. He had seemed ok when I had arrived, but he was getting worse and worse as the minutes ticked by. I sighed again.

"No, Two-Bit. Dally died." I looked up at Two-Bit's face. He looked genuinely confused. "Don't you remember that? Last month, Johnny…." I stopped in mid sentence. I hadn't talked much of Johnny since Pony's depression faze. I tried again, knowing Two-Bit wouldn't care, cause at the moment, he couldn't tell a cat from a horse. "Last month, Johnny and Ponyboy killed Bob, that mean old Soc. They had to run away. Dally helped them run away, and there was a fire in the church they were hiding out in. Johnny broke his back in the fire, trying to save some little kids. He was in the hospital. Then that one night, there was rumble. We beat the Socs, and Pony and Dally went to the hospital to tell Johnny and Johnny died. Dally couldn't take it and robbed a store, and then aimed an unloaded gun at police officers and they shot him. It killed him. He's dead, Two-Bit. He's not coming to meet you because he's dead." I took a deep breath. That was a lot to say to a drunk person, and I wasn't sure Two-Bit had even taken it all in. I let go of his shoulder. "Maybe you should just go on home, on. I'll walk you there." I added. I wanted to make sure he got home safe without getting jumped. That was the last thing we needed. Another death in the gang because he had been drunk.

"OK." Two-Bit agreed, nodding his head. He wasn't swaying so much any more, and could support his own weight once again. I wondered what kind of alcohol he was drinking. It seemed to hit him in spurts. I turned to walk out of the parking lot, Two-Bit next to me. We walked in silence all the way to his house, five blocks away. It was two more to the right and one to the left if I wanted to get to our house, and two left and two right if I wanted to get the lot. I watched him stumble into his house, and he turned to wave as he opened the door. When he turned to walk back inside, he ran into the screen door that he hadn't yet opened. I heard him muttering to himself as he opened it. Both doors slammed behind him, and I saw a light flick on. I stood there for a while longer, and then decided I was easy prey for drunk Socs, so I turned left and began walking. When I arrived at the lot, I spotted my jacket laying in the same spot it had been when I had left, and I went over. Rustling sound scared me, and I jumped back.

"Hello?" I said. A figure sat up from under my coat. It was Pony. "Ponyboy! I thought you didn't want to come?"

"Yeah, well I didn't, but I changed my mind." He said. "Where you been?"

"At the Dingo with Two-Bit." I said, not wanting to explain in further detail. He nodded. It was silent for a while, and then I said, "We should probably get home. Darry'll get us both if we're not home before ten." I grabbed my jacket, and extended a hand to Ponyboy. He took it and I pulled him to his feet and let go of his hand.

The walk home was silent. There was something about me and Ponyboy and silences. They weren't uncomfortable, like they were with most people. They were actually kind of nice when I was with Pony. When we got home, Pony went into the bathroom to wash up for supper, and I went into the kitchen and grabbed plates out of the cupboard and began to set the table for dinner. Darry was cooking chicken for us.

"Where were you guys?" He asked, stirring a sauce on the stove.

"Taking a walk down the lot." I replied, setting out knives and forks.

"Oh. I uh….saw your letter. From Sandy. Sorry, little buddy. I thought you guys could work it out." I stared at him in amazement. Darry had never said anything that personal to me. I snapped out of my reverie and replied,

"Oh…uh….yeah. Thanks." _I think…_I thought. I finished setting the table and went into the living room, vaguely thinking that my walk had been to empty my mind of stuff, but instead I had just added to it by thinking of Dally and Johnny again. I sighed, thinking that it was going to be a loooong summer.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the Outsiders, just Teresa Macks and Matthew Block.

**Chapter 3 – **Sodapop's POV

I woke up to the sound of Ponyboy rustling around. I rubbed my eyes with the back of my hand and my vision cleared a little.

"Ponyboy? What are you doing?" I asked, glancing over at the clock. 10:30 AM. I looked back over at Ponyboy, then suddenly snapped my head back to the clock. "10:30 AM! PONYBOY! Did you turn off the alarm?" I asked, jumping out of bed. "I'm gonna be late for work! Oh man, Mr. Meyer is gonna be so mad!" I threw on a shirt and a pair of jeans before Pony even had time to say anything.

"Sodapop! Slow down! Darry turned off the alarm and called into Mr. Meyer for you. He thought you could use the day off. There's a note on the counter." He said as he walked out. I slumped my shoulders. Darry. Leave it up to Darry to do something like that. I was grateful for the day off, but I knew we couldn't afford it, and now Darry would have to work twice as hard to get the money. I let out a long breath, and plopped back down on the bed, peeling my shirt off over my head.

I got up and wandered into the kitchen, scratching my chest and yawning. Ponyboy looked up from the paper. I wondered why he wasn't at school, then remembered it was summer break.

"You got plans today, Pony?" I asked, taking some eggs out of the pan and grabbing the grape jelly out of the fridge. The chocolate cake was on the table. I sat down across from Ponyboy, reading the ad for the shoe store on the back. _Buy one get one free!_ It exclaimed. In the fine print at the bottom, it said, _First item must be over $27, second item must be below $20. _I smiled to myself, thinking, _What a rip-off._ Ponyboy put down the paper, and answered my question.

"Yeah. Me and some kids from school are going to the Dingo later on, and then we're gonna go the movies. You can come if you want." He added courteously. He knew I wouldn't want to come, but he offered anyway.

"Naw. I think I'm gonna go see what Steve's doing today." I thought about what I had just said, then said, "Oh wait. Steve's at work." My shoulders slumped again, and I spooned grape jelly over my eggs, taking a big bite. "I don't…" I swallowed my eggs. "know what I'm doing then. Probably just wandering around, looking for something to do. I'll catch you up if I change my mind." I said, cutting a piece of chocolate cake.

"OK." Ponyboy said, folding up the paper and laying it back on the table. He got up and walked out toward the front door, calling "See ya later!" over his shoulder as he opened the door. It slammed shut behind him, and the house fell silent as I chewed my cake.

"Yeah. See ya later." I said thoughtfully, way too late. I sat for a long time, slowly devouring my breakfast. When I was done, I cleaned up the whole kitchen, grabbing dirty dishes out of the sink and washing them, and then putting them away. I knew we wouldn't eat the eggs once they were cold, so I threw those away, and covered the cake and put it back on the cake plate on the counter.

I slowly walked from room to room, trying to find something to do. I paused at the door of what had been my parent's room. We kept that door closed, and hadn't opened it. We all knew we could make money off the stuff they had in there, and once Darry even mentioned something about an emergency money supply Mom had kept under the dresser, just in case. None of us ever went in there to see if it was true or not. I sighed, brushing away the cobweb that had been built by a little spider on the doorknob. It made me sad to know that we hadn't been in there that long. I decided against going in, and instead went down the hall to the back door. I walked outside, grabbing a pair of Darry's old shoes and slipping into them, tying them as I sat down on the back porch. I sat there for a minute, and then took off down the street. There were a few kids out playing in the yard down the block as I walked by, and it made me remember what it was like when I was little, and Ponyboy was about 3 or 4. I smiled, remembering how he would get so mad if we played a game of tag, because he was always "it", because he couldn't run fast enough.

I kept walking in the general direction of The Dingo, even though I knew I didn't really want to go there. I stared down at my feet, walking slowly. I turned a corner, and suddenly ran into someone. They were knocked to the ground, and I heard an "Oomph. Ow…." I looked down. It was a girl. I bent down.

"Are you OK? Sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." I helped her stand up. She dusted off her hands on her jeans, and smeared a little bit of blood on them.

"Oh, you're bleeding. Are you sure you're OK?" I asked, looking at her. She had shoulder-length red hair and big blue eyes in a square face. Her lips seemed to be naturally light pink, even without wearing lip stick…or gloss…or whatever girls called it these days. She looked at her hands, holding them out in front of her. Her right hand was scraped up and bleeding a little bit and the other one was just red from landing on a rock.

"Really, I'm fine. Just a little scrape." She said, wiping the blood off on her jeans. She seemed nice to me.

"I'm Sodapop. Sodapop Curtis." I said, nodding at her.

"Hi. I'm Teresa Macks." She said, smiling at me. I smiled back.

"Well, if you're sure you're OK, then I better get going." I said, gesturing down the street.

"Oh…yeah. You should probably…ya know." She said, blushing a little.

"Ok, well I'll see you later then."

"Yeah. OK. Bye Sodapop." She waved.

"See ya around!" I called over my shoulder as I walked away. I headed off to the Dingo to go find Ponyboy and his friends.

**Author's notes:** I know, this probably isn't all that interesting yet, but it should get better! Please keep up the reviews, I want to know if this is going in the right direction or not. This could get to be a very long story, so I would hope I can at least hold your attention for the first few chapters! Let me know if you're getting bored, and I'll try to make it more interesting. Thanks for all the reviews I already got!


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Sodapop Curtis or any of the Outsiders. I only own Teresa Macks and Matthew Block. And any other characters I decide to throw in…

**Thanks to:**

**Hahukum Konn**

**Dreamer for lyf **

For reviewing my story! I dedicate this chapter to you two! (yeah, probably not that big of a deal, but hey, what else do you want me to do? ) )

**Chapter 4 **– Soda's POV

I caught up with Ponyboy and his friends about fifteen minutes later. When I got to the Dingo, they were all standing around inside, ordering drinks. One of Ponyboy's friends bought my Coke for me, and I was grateful. I would have stayed longer, but some of the girls they were with kept staring open-mouthed at me, and it was sort of…well, disturbing, so I decided to shove off and go find something else to do.

Instead, I headed down the street to the DX I worked at. Steve was under a car working on something, and I kicked him on the shin when he didn't notice me standing there.

"Ouch..." He mumbled, rubbing his shin as he scooted out from under the car. He saw me and his whole face lit up. "Oh, hey Sodapop! It's just you! I thought maybe Evie got mad at me and was here for some sort of wicked revenge." He said, flashing me a smile. "Hey, how come you aren't working today? I heard Darry called in and said you were sick," He looked over his shoulder, and so did I, hoping Mr. Meyer wouldn't come out and tell me I had to work if I wasn't sick. He wasn't anywhere in sight, so we kept talking.

"I didn't know he said I was sick, all I knew was that he called in and told Mr. Meyer that I wasn't coming today." I shrugged, still having that feeling that someone was watching me.

"Well, why did he call in the first place?" Steve asked, looking at me. At first I couldn't remember why, but then it hit me about the letter from Sandy. I hadn't really thought about it much today.

"Oh. Because I got a letter back from Sandy." I said, staring down at my feet. I always seemed to do that when I mentioned the letter from Sandy.

"Oh?" He said. It didn't come out as a statement, more as a question edging me on.

"Yeah. Not good. She said she got a new boyfriend. Matthew some-one-or-other. She said next time she comes to visit, she wants me to meet him."

"Matthew? What a prissy-boy name," Steve mumbled. That was part of the reason we were such good friends - we always thought alike.

"Yeah, that's what I thought." I said, shuffling my feet uncomfortably. This was the first time I could ever remember where I had been uncomfortable with Steve. He must have sensed this, because all he said next was,

"That's not tuff man." I shrugged.

"Yeah, I guess not….." It was quiet for a while, and then Steve got back down on his knees and layed on his back.

"I should probably get back to work," He said, picking up his socket wrench. "The girl that dropped this car off said she was gonna be back at 2:30. Got the time?" He asked, looking at his bare arm. I wondered what had happened to his watch, then remembered Mr. Meyer always made us take our watches off when we worked on cars, "just in case."

"Yeah, it's 2:20." I said, glancing down at my wrist. He swore under his breath, then disappeared under the car. I heard him screwing something in place, and decided I would leave. "Well, I'll see ya around, Steve." I said. He moved his foot as if waving bye to me. Most people wouldn't have picked up on that, but me and Steve always would. I smiled, and turned to walk away.

On the way out of the gas station, I walked by a girl. I smiled politely and kept walking, then whirled around. It was the same girl I had run into earlier.

"Teresa! Hi! What are you doing here?" I asked, looking around. She didn't have a car, so she wasn't there for gas. I assumed maybe she was gonna go inside and grab a soda.

"Oh, hi Sodapop." She blushed, and I vaguely wondered why. "I was just here to pick up my car. I left it here earlier. Something wasn't quite right." She said, shuffling her feet like I did when I was uncomfortable. She looked up. Those big blue eyes were awful pretty. "Some guy was gonna work on it for me….something that started with an S….." She said, trying to remember.

"Oh, Steve! Yeah, your car'll be all fixed up for ya. Steve's my best buddy. He's the best guy to get to work on your car." I said, smiling. She smiled back.

"OK, I'll keep that in mind."

"OK."

Long pause. Long _awkward _pause.

"Well, I should probably get going," She said, jabbing her thumb over her shoulder. "Mom wanted me to get some milk from the store." I wondered why that mattered, but decided to let it go.

"OK, well I'll see ya around!" I said, also turning to leave. As I walked away, I turned around to watch her walk away, but she wasn't walking. She was standing right where I had left her, staring after me. Even from where I stood, I could see her blush furiously, and she turned quickly, and headed toward the garage. I smiled inwardly, thinking, _Maybe this won't be such a bad summer after all._

**Author's notes: Short chapter, I know. I promise it will get more exciting, and longer chapters. I just don't have a whole lot of time right now. **


	5. in between chapter poll

**POLL! PLEASE REPSOND VIA REVIEW!**

Q: What should the next chapter contain?

Teresa and Sodapop meet again (on accident)

Sodapop follows Teresa around town and then asks her out

Sodapop and Steve at work/the gang hanging out at the Curtis's. Sodapop is sort of out of it due to thinking about Teresa

Other (please specify)

If you answer to this question (PLEASE DO), please copy and paste the whole answer into your review reply, so I know specifically what answer you want. Thanks for all the reviews I already got, and sorry this isn't a chapter. I'll try to get up the next chapter either later tonight, or tomorrow, depending on how many answers I get to this. Please take the extra time to reply to this question, so I can figure out what the next chapter will be about! Thank you!


	6. Chapter 5

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Outsiders, only Teresa Macks and Matthew Block. Or anyone else I decide to throw in. )

**Chapter 5** – Soda's POV

I sat bolt upright in bed. I couldn't remember what my dream had been about. Maybe Teresa. Maybe not. I racked my brain for remembrance of any type, bringing up nothing. I sighed, laying back down. I looked over at Ponyboy. He was sound asleep, and hadn't even stirred when I had sat up. I glanced at the clock on my nightstand. 2:43 AM. I took a deep breath, still trying to remember what my dream had been about. I couldn't remember, but sleep was over-taking me, and I felt my eyelids droop, no matter what I did to stop them. Slowly my whole body relaxed, and I let myself fall asleep until I would wake up at 6:30 when my alarm went off.

The next day at work was terrible. Mr. Meyer demanded to know why it was my brother who had called in, not me. I cleared my throat and talked sort of hoarse-like, saying,

"Well, because yesterday I lost my voice. Still feeling kinda down, but I wanted to get back to work." I added in a cough for extra points. He shook his head and sighed, blundering away. I let out a breath I hadn't realized I was holding and turned to head back to Steve. "Hey Stevie man! Whatcha up to?" I called, looking around the garage. He popped up from behind an old beat-up blue car that looked like it had seen better days.

"Hey Sodapop! Nothing much, just working on the transmission." He said, wiping his brow with the back of his hand. I noticed he smeared grease all over his forehead and started to laugh.

"Steve, man, you just smeared grease all over your face! That sure makes you look tuff!..." I said, trailing off at the end. Steve was running his pointer finger back and forth under his chin, his eyes wide and staring over my head. I felt my eyes also get wide and I turned slowly on the spot, knowing, but dreading, what was to come.

"Curtis. You have some explaining to do!" Mr. Meyer barked. He grabbed me by the arm and led me forcefully to his office in the back corner of the building. It was small and cramped, big enough only for his desk and chair, a file cabinet, and another chair across from the desk. I noticed he had to turn to the side in order to fit behind the chair across from his desk, which he pulled out as he squeezed by. "Sit." He ordered, moving to around behind his desk. I sat.

He sighed, and I took a deep breath. "Sodapop Curtis." He said my name, not as a statement, not as a question, but it just sort of hung there with no general purpose. He looked at me straight on. I suppressed a shudder, thinking of what was to come. "Curtis, you have taken off all your days. Yesterday was only an exception because your brother said you weren't able to come to the phone, and something very very very important had come up. He said it was urgent that you skip work. I agreed, not knowing that that very important something was really nothing at all." He intertwined his fingers and bent his arms at the elbows so they were pointed up, and rested his chin on his hands. "Would you care to explain?" He asked. His gaze was steady and almost blinding. I thought of Darry, kindly calling in so I could take the day off. I couldn't decide if he would be mad or just upset about this whole ordeal.

"Um…well, yes, I would like to explain." I said. I looked away from his creepy eyes. They were almost...well, purple. I sighed, and began to twiddle my thumbs. "See, my girlfriend recently moved away. I sent her a letter asking if we could go long-distance, and she sent one back saying that she had a new boyfriend. I was so bummed about it, I could hardly do anything. So Darry called in for me. I didn't even know he had done it, until I woke up at 10:30." I said the last part very quietly and quickly. He looked at me still, and sighed again.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. I would make this one of those happy movie endings where I tell you I understand and that you still have a job," I felt my heart rise up into my throat. "…but I'm not going to." It dropped back down into my toes. I stared at him, all thumb twiddling forgotten. "I'm sorry Sodapop, but I'm going to have to let you go. You can finish you shift if you want. I'll need your shirt and hat back by tomorrow." He paused. "And please put up the 'Help Wanted' sign in the window when you leave." It was like he didn't expect me to finish my shift. I stood up calmly. I decided I would finish my shift so I could fill in Steve on what had happened. I stuck out my hand for him to shake, but he just began writing on his papers. I pulled it back in, and turned to walk out. I made sure to slam the door behind me. If I wasn't going to show him it affected me with words, I sure as heck was going to do it with actions. I stalked over to where Steve was in the garage. I looked around, but he wasn't anywhere in sight.

When I closed the door, he was leaning up against the wall with his arms crossed. The grease on his forehead was gone.

"Hey Sodapop. What happened?" He asked, seeing my face.

"I got fired."

"What? For missing one over your allotted days off? What kind of ---- ---- is this?" He asked, throwing his rag on the ground. "Maybe I should quit too." He said.

"No, don't be stupid about it. You and me both know Meyer never really liked me." I said, shrugging. "I'm finishing my shift and then going home. Mr. Meyer told me to put up the 'Help Wanted' sign when I left," I added dejectedly. Steve faked wincing.

"Ouch."

"Yeah….anyways. You finish up on that transmission?" I asked. My fingers were itching to move. I knew they really wanted to strangle Mr. Meyer, but I directed them in the direction of a car.

"Yeah, everything's done for the day." He said. "I even threw the towels in the corner while I was waiting for you." I glanced over. Sure enough, everything was neat and orderly. I sighed, peeling off my shirt. I pushed my hat off onto the floor, watching it fall. I threw my shirt on top of it.

"Tell Meyer that's my shirt and hat," I said. "I'm headed out."

"With no shirt?"

"Sure, no one'll care." I waved over my shoulder as I walked out, tossing the 'Help Wanted' Sign on the window sill. It fell off, but I didn't bother to pick it up.

As I walked down the street, I felt something brush my leg. I swatted around, but didn't hit anything. I looked down. Nothing was there. Suddenly something caught my eye a few feet in front of me. It was dog. It was pretty small, and looked to be the kind that I had once heard to be a Chihuahua. I clicked my tongue up against the roof of my mouth, coaxing it back. It didn't move, just kept trotting along. I whistled a long low whistle, then ended in a short high note. It was our gang and Shepard's gang's way of saying "who's there?" in code. The dog turned and came running full speed at me. At first I thought it was going to try to bite me, but then I realized it was just running back to me because I had whistled. I opened up my arms and it jumped right into them. I was half-tempted to take it home and ask Darry if we could keep it, when I heard someone yelling behind me.

"Wait! Wait! Wait….!" They ran up to me, gasping for breath. Red hair caught my eye.

"Teresa? Is this your dog?" I asked. She looked up. She was very cute when she was out of breath.

"Umm…" More gasps for air, "Yeah. Coco. Thanks for getting him, Sodapop." She held out her arms for the dog, and I carefully handed him over. I suddenly remembered I was shirtless. _Oh crap. _Once in his master's arms, he began to struggle again. "Sodapop, you must have the magic touch. He's never that calm for strangers," She said, blushing. I laughed.

"I don't know about that. Maybe just lucky." I said, looking at her. She looked up at me. I was considerably taller than her, so she literally had to look _up _into my face. I smiled. Our eyes stayed connected for a while, and she finally looked away, blushing even more. I looked down at the ground.

"Well, I should….ya know…get going," She said, nodding at me.

"Oh…yeah. I'll see ya around. Bye Teresa!" I said, watching her turn to leave. She walked away, and when she stopped, she put her dog back on the ground, with a leash attached to it's collar. She turned around and stooped to pick up his front paw and wave it at me. I laughed and waved back. She walked away, her little dog trotting at her side. I smiled inwardly and began to walk in the other direction.

I got a little farther down the road and it suddenly hit me that I wasn't so mad any more. At first I couldn't remember why I had been mad, but it all came flooding back to me, and soon the Teresa incident was forgotten as I stormed home in a fury, slamming the door behind me.

**Author's notes:** Thanks for voting on the poll, majority said see each other on the street without meaning to. Next chapter might be a little more boring, but I hope not. Let me know what you think!


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Outsiders. Only Teresa Macks and Matthew Block….and technically I guess I own Mr. Meyer, too.

**Chapter 6 **– Soda's POV

I walked home in a daze. _What's Darry gonna say? _Was all that was running through my head at the moment. I carefully thought of the time when Darry had gotten mad at Ponyboy and hit him. Pony had been so upset that he had run away with Johnny. The whole soc killing-Johnny dying-Dally dying was because of it. I quickly wiped this thought from my head, not wanting to blame the whole incident on one person.

I carefully walked up the front steps to our house, holding my breath and skipping over the squeaky step that I had always made sure to hit when I was little. I opened the screen door. It moaned loudly, and I winced inwardly. I opened the wooden front door, and poked my head in. It was dead silent, exactly what I was dreading. It had been dead silent the night Ponyboy had come home, when Darry hit him. I shook my head fiercely. How would I know that? I had been asleep up until Darry had started yelling. I stepped into the living room fully now, looking around. No one. Not a soul. I craned my neck to see into the kitchen. No one there either. I suddenly relaxed when I checked the clock and remembered that Darry was at work. Ponyboy would be out doing something with his friends or Two-Bit. I plopped down on the couch, attempting to plan out what I was going to say to Darry when he got home. All I came up with was "Hi Darry, watcha doing?". I sighed, thinking hard…

Darry stared at me in disbelief.

"You what!" His eyes were wide and full of confusion and anger.

"I got fired for missing yesterday. Apparently I had taken off all my days. Yesterday was just an exception because Mr. Meyer thought I was too sick to even come to the phone." I sighed and plopped down next to him. He had his head buried in his hands.

"What are we going to do now? We can't afford to have only person employed in this house!" He said, rubbing his eyes. "…this is all my fault. I never should have called in for you yesterday….it's all my fault." Now it was my turn to stare in disbelief.

"Darry! Are you crazy! It wasn't your fault that you were sticking up for me and being protective. It just probably seemed like the right thing to do! Don't blame this on yourself, man, that'll just make it all worse." I paused for air before continuing, "I already looked through tonight's paper. There's an opening at the Dairy Queen down on Providence. I'm gonna go apply tomorrow, first thing in the morning so no one else can take it." I said, attempting to reassure him. Apparently it didn't work

"That won't work little buddy. I hate to tell you that. Providence Street is far enough away that you would have to drive, and we can't afford gas. It has to be somewhere close enough that you can walk." He massaged his temples, sighing heavily.

"Well I can use my 10 discount…." I trailed off, remembering I didn't have my 10 employee discount at the DX anymore.

"Well, what about that place down the street and around the corner from here? Oh, what's it called? You know, that gas station that hardly gets any business? You know the one I'm talking about, right Darry?" He looked up, hope in his eyes.

"yeah, that Phillips on the corner? I saw a 'Help Wanted' sign down there just today, as a matter of fact." He seemed much perkier.

"OK, I'll go apply there tomorrow, sound good?" I said, getting up. He just sat there, his head back in his hands. Apparently the hope had worn off rather quickly.

"Darry? You OK, man?" I asked, clapping him on the shoulder. He looked up.

"Sodapop, man, I don't how good we're doing financially. I'm not so sure we can even afford to keep Ponyboy in school for much longer. We might be able to afford a half of a semester. We're gonna have to take him out of the private school…" He looked like he might start to cry, but I knew he wouldn't. He was so upset about taking him out of the private school because that was where mom had wanted us all to go, even after she was gone. She had been an avid Catholic believer, and had sent us all to St. Anthony's for years. That was before I had dropped out to help with the finances.

"Well…I'll take Pony down to the Phillip's with me tomorrow morning. He's old enough to be pumping gas. He knows enough about cars to work at a gas station, right Dar?" I asked, false hope filling my voice.

"Sodapop, get a grip. You know Pony can't tell a transmission from a carburetor. He'll have to work somewhere else."

"Come on, Darry, you don't have to know that much to work at a gas station. I could be the mechanic while Pony pumps gas. All you have to know to pump gas is 'diesel or regular, ma'am?' That and where the oil reservoir is, and how to wet down a squeegee to clean bird crap off the windows. How hard can it be?" I asked, heading toward the kitchen. I hoped if I acted like the subject was closed, maybe it would be. Darry looked out the window. Pony was headed up the front walk.

"Well…I suppose it couldn't hurt to try…." He said. The front door slammed.

"What couldn't hurt?" Ponyboy asked, taking off his shoes and throwing them under the couch.

"You, little mister." Pony looked confused. "You're going with Sodapop tomorrow morning to get a job. We need more financial help around here, and you're plenty old enough to be helping." Darry informed him. Ponyboy looked over at me quizzically.

"…But….Doesn't Sodapop have a job already?" _Oh crap Ponyboy. Wrong question!_ I pleaded to him telepathically not to go own, but it obviously didn't work. I cleared my throat loudly, and signaled for Pony to follow me into the kitchen. Darry was back to staring out the window. I sighed as I waited for Pony to come. Slowly he did, a look of genuine confusion on his face. He kept glancing from Darry to me, and back again. I followed him into the kitchen, shutting the door behind me.

"I got fired." I said plainly, getting into the cabinet to find a snack. He stared at me.

"What?" He said, trying unsuccessfully to cock an eyebrow like Two-Bit.

"I got fired for taking too many days off work. We can't afford it any more, and you might have to go to a public school. You're coming with me to get a summer job to help pay for stuff. We're applying at the Phillips around the corner tomorrow morning." I said, starting in on some saltines.

"But I don't know anything about cars!" Ponyboy said, grabbing a saltine out of the bag.

"You can pump gas. That doesn't take much. You know how to tell how much oil a car has, don't you?" He nodded. "Well, then you're all set. That, pumping gas, and washing windows are all you need to know." I said, stuffing another saltine in my mouth.

He mouthed wordlessly at me.

"No arguments. Case closed." I swallowed. "look, Ponyboy. Mom always wanted us to go to that school and the burden just got too big for me and Darry to handle by ourselves. You're old and tough enough. You can help pay for your tuition, too. Plus, Darry really wants to get you through college. He's even considered going into Mom and Dad's room and looking for the emergency money. Mom would be really happy if she knew at least one of us went through college and got a degree in only God-knows-what." I said. I got up and left the bag of saltines on the table for later.

"I'm going for a walk." I said to Darry as I walked out. He didn't even look up as I walked out the door and down the street. I wondered what he was thinking. Maybe he wished he had a girlfriend. Maybe he wished Mom and Dad were still alive. A flash of lightning and a crack of thunder interrupted my thoughts. I looked up, and a big fat drop of rain landed on my cheek. _Crap_ was all I had time to think before it came down in buckets, dumping on my head, soaking my hair and clothes in no time. I watched as little kids down the street ran inside, covering their heads with their hands. A little one was still on top of the slide, visibly shaking. Whether from cold or from fear the everyone had left him, I couldn't tell. He sort of reminded me of Ponyboy when he was little. Always left alone when we all went to have fun. I watched as his mother came running out, wearing a baseball cap in an attempt to keep the rain off her face. She tried to coax him down, and in a matter of seconds, he was in his mother's arms and they were running for the house.

I heard a loud honking behind me. I turned and jumped out of the way as a blue Mustang roared by, splashing muddy water all over me. A Soc leaned his head out the window and yelled, "GREASE!" before they sped off. I cussed them out, thinking, _Great…as if Darry's not mad enough as is…_ I walked off bitterly in the direction of home, thinking. Teresa never even crossed my mind after the incident earlier. I had my mind on other things…


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer:** well…you know the drill

**AUTHORS NOTES (VERY IMPORTANT) :** sorry it took me so long to update, but my sister recently had her baby (everything went fine in case you were wondering. Beautiful boy. I'm very excited) and so me and Mom are going up to Kansas City quite often to go visit, so that's why it took so long to update. Don't think I've forgotten about you, I haven't! ) It may take me a while to update over the summer, because I have camp, family trips, baby visits, grandma visits, farm visits, etc etc so I really haven't forgotten about you all! I fully intend to finish this story before Christmas (Oh Lord let's not start thinking about Christmas already), because it should end up being pretty long. We'll see! Just thought I would let you all in on the scoop! R&R please! Enjoy!

**Chapter 8**

I hauled myself out of bed when the alarm went off, and tapped Ponyboy on the shoulder. He didn't budge.

"Come on Ponyboy, get up! We got to go apply for that job at the Phillips down the street," I said, shoving him clear off the bed. He fell right off and landed with a _thump_.

"Ow! Hey!" He said, his face appearing over the edge of the bed. "Whad'jya do that for?" He asked, looking bewildered.

"Sorry, kid. We gotta get ready for work…or what we hope will be work, anyway. Remember? We got to go apply for that job at the Phillips down the street." I said. "Ooh…de ja vue." I said jokingly. He obviously didn't get the little joke, but he got up off the ground nonetheless and drug himself into the bathroom. I heard the shower start running, and I pulled on a nice clean shirt. It wasn't the nicest one I had, but it wasn't a torn-up shirt either. It had a collar and three buttons, and was maroon with green and blue stripes across the chest. Mom had gotten it for me, and I had never found a use for it before now. I sighed and pulled on a pair of my nicer jeans, and my good brown loafers. I looked into the mirror one last time and combed out my hair with my fingers before heading into the kitchen for breakfast. Darry was in there, too, making eggs on the stove.

"I made extra eggs so you and Ponyboy can both have plenty. Hope you're hungry," He said, bringing the pan over and dumping a third of them on my plate. I picked up the grape jelly and spooned it over the top, and then picked up my fork and dug in. I was just licking the last remains of the jelly off my fork when Ponyboy opened the door to bathroom and stepped out, covered in a towel. The steam poured out of the shower behind him.

"Gosh, Pony! Use enough hot water!" I said jokingly, aiming my fork at him. He laughed sarcastically, then disappeared into our room to change. "Put on something half-way decent!" I called to him. I heard a faint muffled reply, and assumed it was an OK.

Pony and I reappeared from out of the Phillip's station, both grinning from ear to ear. He had hired us both. I was getting $3.00 an hour and Ponyboy was getting $1.75. We started the next day. I had gotten a job in the body repair shop, working on body construction and repair, and the paint job guy was gonna teach me how to do detail paint work, so that way I could cover for him if he had to take off. This would be great. Too bad Steve was still stuck at the DX. Pony had gotten the job pumping gas and wiping windshields. The other auto-mechanic in the place had promised to teach him how to change oil, so he could get a little extra for that. There was a rule around there that whoever changed the oil in a car should write it down and they would get an extra $1.00 for the extra time. The guys that currently worked there were also Greasers, although I had never met them before. One of them claimed to be from Brumly's gang, and I never caught where the paint work guy belonged. Maybe a free-loader.

"Man, that sure was easy." Ponyboy said, walking with a little spring in his step. The interview had been a big blur to me. All I had really heard was "OK, you're hired!"

"Yeah, actually it was surprising……" I trailed off, gazing at one of the houses. Ponyboy looked at me, then followed my gaze. I noticed him blush a bit, then he muttered,

"OK, well I'll go on ahead." He stumbled forward, then turned onto Johnny's street, before realizing that Johnny wasn't there anymore, and then heading for home. I watched him until he was out of site around the corner, then turned back to Teresa's house. Or what I assumed was Teresa's house, anyway. She was outside letting her dog go to the bathroom when I walked up the drive with my hands in my pockets.

"Hey Sodapop!" She said cheerily, waving at me.

"Hi Teresa. What are you doing?" I asked, jamming my hands deeper into my pockets. I had never gotten this flustered around a girl before.

"Oh, just, ya know. Hanging out."

"Oh. That sounds like fun." She laughed, then said,

"So why are you looking so happy?"

"Ah…me and my brother, Ponyboy just applied at the Phillips down the street there," I pointed, "and we both got good paying jobs."

"Oh, so you're working two jobs, then? I bet that's a huge help to your older brother."

"Um, actually, I lost my job at the DX. We could hardly afford to send Ponyboy to school anymore, so we decided he was old enough to help out for his tuition. Plus I know Darry really wants him to go to college."

"And Darry is the older one, and Ponyboy is the younger one?"

"Right. 21 and 15." I said.

There was a long awkward pause.

"Well, looks like Coco's done. I should prolly go check on my spaghetti. It's my turn to cook dinner tonight." She said, picking up her dog.

"Ok, yeah. I'll see ya around, then?"

"OK. See ya around."

"OK. Bye!" I turned to head back toward the house.

"Oh, wait. Sodapop?" I looked back over my shoulder, stopped walking."Do you think maybe I could come by and meet your brothers sometime?" She asked cautiously. "….Ya know, since I know you and all…..I understand if its inconvenient….." She looked uncomfortable now.

"No. Yeah, you can come by anytime. We live down-"

"Yeah, I know where it is." She said, cutting me off. I nodded, then waved and started walking again. This time she didn't stop me.

_Wait a minute…how does she know where I live?..._ I thought, confused. I was snapped out of it when I reached the house, much sooner than I expected. I opened the door and let it slam behind me. Ponyboy wasn't home yet, and I didn't really care where he was at that point. I had to get busy cleaning so if and when Teresa stopped by, she wouldn't think we were pigs. )


	9. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the Outsiders, only Teresa Macks, Matthew Block, and Mr. Meyer.

**Chapter 8 **– Soda's POV

Darry opened the door and let it slam shut behind him. I was watching TV in the living room.

"Well? How'd it go?" He asked, hanging his coat up in the closet. He was the only one in the house that actually did that.

"We both got jobs. I'm gonna be the mechanic and the paint detailing guy is gonna teach me how to do that. I'm gonna be getting paid $3.00 an hour, and Ponyboy's getting $1.75 to pump gas and clean windshields. I promised him I would teach him how to change oil, though. Whoever changes the oil in a car gets an extra buck." I said, flipping off the TV. I had my dust rag in my hand and started to dust the coffee tables. Darry gave me a weird look.

"Why are you cleaning?" He asked suspiciously.

"Because Teresa might be coming over. I want the place to look good for her." I said.

"Who's Teresa?" Ponyboy asked as he came in from the front door.

"Just this girl I know." I replied, moving on to dust the window sills.

"_Just_ a _girl_!" Darry exclaimed. "Yeah, right Sodapop. If you know a girl, she's obviously more than a friend." I blushed.

"No, actually, Teresa is just a friend. Honestly."

"Suuuure. Ponyboy, come help me make dinner." Darry said, moving into the kitchen. Ponyboy lingered back a minute, looking at me. I dropped my gaze and kept cleaning.

"Pony!" Darry called from the kitchen. Ponyboy disappeared into the kitchen, and I slumped back down on the couch just as Steve came banging into the room.

"Hey Sodapop!" He said, slapping me on the back and going into the kitchen to grab a coke. He came back in and threw me one, which I let sit, knowing he had shaken it up in the kitchen so that it would spray in my face.

"Nice try, Steve, but I know you shook it up." I said, smirking at him. He popped his open and took a swig.

"Actually, no. This time I didn't." He said, taking another drink from his own.

"I don't believe you." I said, eyeing the soda wearily.

"Honestly!" He said, holding up his hands as if surrendering.

I scooted the soda toward him.

"Fine. You open it, then." I said, smiling mischievously. He scooted it back toward me.

"No way. You know I shook it up!" He said, laughing. I laughed too. After the laughter died down, he said,

"Hey, man. Back to the whole reason I came here! Did you get the job?" I nodded, finally opening my soda. He stared at me. "Pony too?" He asked. I nodded again. He slapped me on the back, causing me to spill my coke down my shirt. I watched it soak into the fabric, not bothering to try to clean it up until I remembered it was a good shirt. _Too late_ I thought, peeling off my shirt to reveal my white undershirt. Steve didn't notice. He was staring at the kitchen door. I followed his gaze, and saw smoke coming from the kitchen. I jumped up, saying, "Shit! Darry started a fire!" We both ran toward the kitchen, and upon arriving, both burst into laughter at the funny sight. Darry and Ponyboy were running around frantically. Ponyboy grabbed the fire extinguisher from under the sink, while Darry hopped around from foot to foot, holding a flaming chicken. Ponyboy sprayed the chicken till it was covered in white fluffy looking stuff. It continued to smoke, and by that point, Steve and I were both on the floor laughing. Ponyboy looked around in amazement, then also burst out laughing. Darry finally gave in to the temptation and began to laugh a little along with us.

We were all sitting there, laughing, until I looked up. I gasped, then jumped up from the floor, and wiped the tears the laughter had caused.

"Teresa!" I yelped, kicking Steve. "Uh…hi. This is, erm….Darry, and Ponyboy and Steve. Darry and Pony were, uh, making dinner." I looked at the limp chicken on the floor, covered in fluffy stuff. Teresa caught sight of it, and was fighting not to laugh.

"I was wondering what the smell was. And if you're still gonna eat that, then you're crazy." She said, finally letting out the laugh. It was light and bubbly, and flowed from her mouth like water from a fountain. _Geez, I'm turning into some lovey-dovey poetey-person._ I though, reconsidering my choice of words I had used to describe the laugh in my head.

"I would ask if you want to stay for dinner, but…." I gestured at the chicken on the floor, and she nodded, backing out of the room.

"Yeah." She smiled. "I better get going, anyway."

"I'll…uh, walk you to the front door." I said, gathering courage from my toes. We walked through the living room and toward the front porch. It was just beginning to get dark, and the first star was showing.

"Hey! Make a wish." I said. She closed her eyes, and I watched her take a deep breath.

"OK, your turn." She said, opening her eyes and looking toward me. I closed my eyes briefly and then opened them again, barely giving thought to the wish.

"Whadjya wish for?" She asked.

"Luck." I said, wondering if she would understand. "You?"

"Courage."

"Courage? For what?" I asked, looking at her and cocking my head to the side. She quickly leaned in and kissed me on the lips. Briefly, but it was a kiss nonetheless.

"For that." She said quietly. "I have to go." She said, blushing, and she turned and walked down the walk. When she reached the gate, I called after her.

"Wait! Teresa! Aren't you gonna ask why I wished for luck?" I asked. She smiled.

"Why did you wish for luck?" She asked.

"I was hoping I would get lucky and have the girl of my dreams kiss me." I said, turning to go inside. "Bye!" I said, opening the door. Of course, Ponyboy, Darry, and Steve were all standing at the window watching like three little girls watching their crush. I laughed at the sight, and plopped down on the couch, preparing for a long night of ridicule.

(**a/n: **sorry, short chapter I know. I got back from camp yesterday, and we leave for vacation tomorrow. I'm trying to update as soon as possible, and that was all the sooner I got this chapter finished. Hope you all like it so far! R&R please!)


	10. Chapter 9

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders characters, only Teresa and Mr. Meyers

**Chapter 9**

Steve started in immediately. "Hey man! Way to go! Score!" He said, hitting me on the back. I casually flipped on the TV and began to watch the news. Ponyboy disappeared into the kitchen again and Darry was close on his tail, although I didn't hear action and knew they were both listening intently. I leaned back into the couch and put my hands behind my head, still staring at the TV.

Steve tried again. "Sodapop! Seriously, man! You just kissed her! I need to know about this." He said. I continued to stare helplessly at the news channel. Steve gave up and plopped next to me. "You're no fun." He said, crossing his arms.

"Yeah, prolly not." I said. A story on the news came on, and I immediately recognized another part of our neighborhood. "Hey look!" I said, turning up the volume. Darry and Pony came in from the kitchen to watch.

"_And tonight, late breaking news. A small neighborhood disturbed by this crime-wrecking young man."_ The news anchor said. It flashed a picture of someone I had seen before and knew very well.

"Tim Shepard!" Darry yelped, jumping out of his chair as if it had burned him.

"Wonder what he-" I began, but Darry cut me off with a frantic wave of his hand.

"_Twenty two year old Tim Shepard of Oklahoma left his very own neighborhood in a panic by catching fire to a neighbor's tool shed, which then spread to the wooden fence. There were no injuries, although Shepard is on trial for property damage."_ The story flicked over to something about a car wreck and Darry reached down to turn off the TV.

"Property damage…" He muttered, shaking his head. "How do they know it wasn't an accident!" He said furiously.

"Darry, its Shepard. Nothing he does is an accident." I pointed out.

"That's true." He nodded slowly, and then made his way back into the kitchen. "Dinner's ready." He called over his shoulder. I got up, wondering what we were possibly eating for dinner since the chicken had been singed. As I walked into the kitchen, I noticed the cereal boxes on the table, surrounded by bowls, spoons, and the milk carton. I didn't say anything, but sat down at the table. Steve sat down next to me. I guess he figured it was OK to stay since it was just cereal. I grabbed the corn flakes and poured myself a bowl, crunching away noisily.

After supper, we watched a bit more TV, and then Steve decided to shove off.

"Later." I said, raising my hand in farewell. The door slammed behind him, and I watched his figure retreating in the dark. "I think I'm going to get to bed early tonight," I said, heading toward my bedroom.

"Wait." Darry said. He muttered something to Ponyboy and Pony reluctantly got up and wandered to our room, shutting the door behind him. Darry gestured for me to sit down. _Oh Lord._ I thought, sitting down carefully on the very edge of the chair.

"I just want to talk to you. About Teresa – was that her name?" I nodded. "OK. I just don't want you to get too serious too fast." He said, getting up and walking back into the kitchen. I raised an eyebrow at his back and shrugged to myself, getting up to go to my room. I went on in without knocking, to find Ponyboy already changed and lying on his bed reading _Gone with the Wind_.

"Ponyboy, don't you ever want to read anything else?" I asked, peeling off my shirt. He shook his head in a silent _no_ and I saw him glance at his only picture of Johnny. I sighed. "Pony, there's nothing you can do to undo what you guys did. You have to understand that it wasn't your fault." I said, climbing into my bed.

He glared at me like he had never glared at me before. "Who said I thought it was my fault!" He said coldly. I opened my mouth to say something, but he reached over and turned out the lamp, and I heard him roll over to face the wall. I sighed again and slumped down into the covers, staring at the darkened ceiling over my head.

(**A/n: **another short chapter, I know. Sorry for all the short chapters. After vacation, I went to visit my sister and my nephew in Kansas City, and then my cousin came home with us, and she's here now. It's been nothing but run run run, and I couldn't find time to do this. Hopefully the next one will be longer. Please R&R!)


	11. Chapter 10

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Outsiders. Just Teresa Mack and Mr. Meyers.

OK, I am going to try to get back into the swing of this story. Thanks to tikagem for getting me restarted. Let's see how long this lasts. I want to dedicate this chapter to her.

**Chapter 10**

"Ponyboy?" I whispered into the dark. I listened carefully for any noise from his direction. None came. "Pony. Listen to me." I sighed. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry for assuming that you blamed it on yourself. I was obviously wrong." That was the hard part, as I was usually so stubborn to admit I was wrong. I listened intently again for a trace of a sound. Finally, one came. But it wasn't the whisper I sometimes heard right after the light went out, telling me about his day. This time it was different. It sounded like a sniffle. I carefully reached over and flicked the light back on and sat up, looking at Pony. His eyes were bloodshot and his eyelashes clumped together. A tear rolled down his face. I knew how embarrassing this was for him, having his older brother seeing him crying.

He turned to face the wall, and tried to pull the covers over his head. I pulled them back again. "Ponyboy? Are you OK? What's….what's wrong, man?" I asked tentatively.

"Sodapop, you're right. I completely blame this on myself. It's my fault that Johnny got killed. I was the one who wanted to run away." He took a shaky breath. "It never would have happened if it hadn't been for me falling asleep in the Lot, and then Darry hitting me cause I was getting all mouthy, and then I ran away and I dragged Johnny down with me!" He said, his voice rising slightly with every syllable. He took a big, shuddering breath, and more tears flowed from his red eyes.

I glanced quickly toward the door, almost expecting to see Darry standing there, staring. I knew how much Darry hated to see Pony cry, and I tried to quiet Ponyboy. "Pony, you gotta be quiet. You don't want Darry coming in!" I said. Another shuddering breath. "Ponyboy, listen to me!" I said firmly, grabbing him by the shoulders and turning him to look at me. "This wasn't your fault. It wasn't anybody's fault. Not mine or yours or Darry's or Johnny's or Two-Bit's or anybody's! It was a _freak accident_! Johnny was just doing what he felt was right. He was going to save those kids no matter what you did or said. He was going to, Ponyboy." I said, shaking him slightly. His breathing was becoming halfway normal, but there were still tears dripping every now and then.

"But…. But what if I had-"

"No Ponyboy. No. It wouldn't have helped, and it won't help now to go through all these what-ifs. It won't bring him back." I gestured to his _Gone with the Wind _book. "Not all the reading in the world." I gestured to his picture of Johhny. "Or all the looking in the world." I tapped his forehead. "Or all the wishing in the world." He shoulders shuddered one last time and the tears stopped.

"OK." He said as confidently as he could.

"OK?"

"OK."

"OK." I said, nodding my head. I reached up to turn off the light, thinking the conversation was over.

"Hey Soda?"

I stopped my hand in mid-air and brought it back down to my side.

"Yeah?"

"Can we visit him tomorrow? I mean… can we go to his grave?" Pony asked, staring hard at me. I looked away. We had never visited Johnny's grave. Not once. We hadn't even gone to the funeral. Ponyboy had been sick, and the rest of us wouldn't have been able to stand it. I sighed.

"Sodapop? Can we?" He asked pleadingly. He almost sounded like a little kid, begging to go the park.

"Yeah, Ponyboy. Yeah, we can." I sighed, turning out the light.

As we both slid down into the covers, I thought about what had just happened. What if Ponyboy took things too seriously and….I stopped my train of thought in its tracks, not wanting to think about losing any more people in my life.

A few hours later, I lay still awake in the bed. It was now silent in the house. The bowls had stopped clinging against one another, and the whistling had ceased as Darry went to bed. Had my mind not been on the recent events of the evening, I would have noticed that the absence of the deep breathing next to me meant that I was not the only one laying awake.

We stood in a semi-circle. Me, Pony, Darry, Two-Bit, and Steve. We were all wearing our Sunday best, and we all probably looked out of place – a bunch of Greasers clumped around a grave in a cemetery. Ponyboy bent down and placed a package on the mound. It was wrapped in newspaper so we couldn't tell what it was, but I had noticed that morning that _Gone with the Wind_ was absent from Ponyboy's night stand. It was silent for a while, and we all just stared at the grey stone stating two simple words – Johnny Cade. His parents hadn't loved him enough to put anything more on it, and none of us in the gang had enough money to contribute anything more.

Two-Bit looked away uncomfortably. I breathed out loudly, and Darry shifted positions. We were all there just for Ponyboy. Sure, we were all super uncomfortable standing there, waiting, but we had to do it for Ponyboy. We had agreed on that one in the living room while Ponyboy was changing.

Pony turned around. He nodded at me and I nodded back. The rest of the gang turned to leave, and I watched their backs sauntering away. I turned to look at Ponyboy. He took a deep breath and smiled a weak smile. I put my arm around his shoulders and half-hugged him, then let him go. "I'm proud of you Pony." I said, not knowing what else to say. He smiled again, a little stronger this time, and we walked slowly after the gang, Ponyboy glancing over his shoulder at the newspaper-wrapped package and grey stone.

(**A/N** OK well there ya go! I'll try to get more done later. Please R&R.)


End file.
